Volkswagen Group will start a service action for 8.5 million diesel vehicles in Europe, fitted with a defeat device

Volkswagen Group will start a service action for 8.5 million
diesel vehicles in Europe, fitted with a defeat device.

The producer will embark the recall after German authorities
denied the proposal for voluntary repairs. The affected vehicles represent around
one-third of VW’s total deliveries on the continent from 2009 through August this
year. 2.4 million of these machines are located in Germany.

Some of the cars involved will need only a software update
while other will need new engine parts. KBA, Germany’s motor transport
authority, will supervise the whole process and test some of the fixed
vehicles. The recall will start in January next year with most of the necessary
parts expected to be ready by next September.

“The KBA is under pressure to show to the public they’re on
top of this and that they’re in the driver’s seat,” Stefan Bratzel, head of
auto research at the University of Applied Sciences, commented. “Recalls to fix
key safety issues that go to the core of a vehicle’s operation almost always
occur voluntarily, with the KBA monitoring. So making this fix - while the cars
are running safely - a mandatory one shows the political pressure.”